Glide Gear BFS 100 Butterfly Scrim – 4x4, 6x6, 8x8 Diffuser – 3 Nylon Silks, Quick-Setup Frame, C-Stand Clamps Included

This is a nice scrim kit that you can assemble in 4, 6 and 8 foot sizes. Everything breaks down and fits into a supplied bag. Setup and tear down is reasonably quick and the whole thing is fairly light weight to carry. They include everything you need to setup the frame EXCEPT for the main stands. You will need two sturdy C stands with grip heads to attach the (supplied) clamps to. Be sure you have fairly heavy stands that you can sandbag because if you use this outdoors it's going to be like a big sail and a gust of wind could send the whole thing flying.If you don't care that the scrim is stretched taut, you can put it on the frame with just the four corner loops and it will pretty much stay put. If you want it to be tight and wrinkle free you can use the included elastic ball ties. They give you enough to tie off every single grommet in the frame.The elastic ball ties seem kind of short to me. This makes them harder to stretch and put in place, it also puts a lot of force on the scrim. So on the good side it will hold things really tight, maybe too tight if you use all of them. I think it would have been better if they made them about an inch longer, this would still hold the scrim tightly but would have made it easier to get the ties on and off. As other people have said, I wouldn't use all the ball ties unless you absolutely have to, just use enough to keep the scrim tight.Aside from using it outside, this is good for taking some high power COB LED lights and diffusing them into some nice soft light. It's big enough you can put several lights behind it at once. With colored lights you can turn it into a nice color background.The main use I was planning for it was to put it in front of a large window in my studio. Particularly in the winter direct sun shines straight through the window against the walls and floor making the room very hard to light. This scrim will cover the entire window so instead of intense sunlight it will just become a very large soft light source for the whole room. Great way to make use of sunlight.

This scrim from Glide Gear can be used in 4x4, 6x6, or 8x8 configurations, which is great because it allows flexibility. The 8x8 configuration does tend to put a lot of stress on the frame and does cause a small amount of flex, but I don't see that as much of an issue because the frame reverts back to its original shape when disassembled. The scrim fabric is good quality and provides a pleasing diffusion to harsh sunlight, with about a 2 stop reduction in brightness. You could also use it as a bounce source if you want. It's a little time consuming to assemble, but that's just the nature of a portable frame system like this.The included bag is good for storage/transportation. I kind of wish it were just a little roomier to fit all the parts more comfortably, but it works.You will definitely need heavy duty C-stands (or heavy duty combo stands, but NOT your average flimsy light stands) to mount these, and you'll need sandbags to secure the base. Scrims act like a giant sail in the wind so don't expect to use this in windy conditions unless you've got strong people holding on to the stands for safety, and even then there's a limit as to how much wind is safe.I consider this a very worthy addition to my video toolkit for outdoor shoots in the sun. It's well designed and well made with quality materials and is a decent value for money, so I would recommend it.

I'm actually thinking of ordering a second copy of this butterfly since the first one I bought has been permanently installed in my YouTube studio. One thing that impressed me was the compact carry bag this thing came with, making it suitable for transport and use on location. My only reservation is the tubing of the frame is not strong enough and can bend under tension, particularly when rigged in the 8'x8' configuration. The butterfly comes with a huge supply of purpose-built elastic ball ties that are exactly sized to secure the silk to the frame. The problem is you installed them all, one at every grommet on the 8'x8' silk, that puts the frame under enormous tension. This tension tends to make the frame bow -- it will lie flat on the floor, but when lifted into use position, the frame wants to bow a bit. I made the mistake of trying to pop the frame flat again, but discovered I had only bent the frame, not taken out the bow. My advice - at 4'x4' and 6'x6' configurations, no worries. When rigged at the largest size, 8'x8', be careful. I would avoid using any more bungie ball ties than absolutely necessary. I don't think the frame is strong enough extended to the largest size to tolerate the stretching forces of putting a bungie ball tie at every grommet on the silk.

It's very simple. Basically, you have four corner pieces that fit together to form the 4' x 4' size. With straight pieces inserted between the corner pieces, the frame expands to the 6' x 6' size. Add one more straight piece, and the frame becomes 8' x 8'. There are three diffuser sheets, one for each frame configuration.After selecting a size that works best for your shoot, you attach the frame holders and put the frame up on a pair of sturdy light stands. The diffusers work as expected.Everything tucks away into an included fabric bag. The bag is a teeny bit too small, making it difficult to get the frame corner pieces in without a little patience.I normally don't mention price unless something is outside of my expected price range. $300 seems a little steep for what you get, but that doesn't take away from my impression that this is a lightweight, handy, adjustable diffuser kit.